Tina - Operations Supervisor, Social Media
Tina was born and raised on the Oregon Coast and she and her family moved to Bend in 1990 to "dry out."
Hobbies & Past-times?
"I like to garden, camp and spend time with my family and friends!"
Favorite Garden Style?
"Cottage gardens are my favorite! I love lots of color and texture in a garden and just wish I had more time to spend in my garden!"
Favorite Plants?
"Peonies, roses, daisies, flowering vines - all the cottage garden type plants. I love Sun Gold tomatoes, peas and summer squash in my veggie garden!"
Carol - Operations Supervisor
Carol grew up in Las Vegas NV and met her husband in Yellowstone! She moved to Central Oregon 35 years ago for a horse job. Carol loves working outside everyday and spending time with the people she works with, and our customers - and of course the flowers are always a bonus as well!
Hobbies & Past-times?
"Horses, gardening, walking, cooking, worms and making things."
Favorite Garden Style?
"Chaos!! I'm a 'plunker.' My dream? Organized - no weeds!"
Favorite Plants?
"Iris, geraniums, rhubarb, lilies, dahlias, salvia, petunias, hops, hibiscus, phlox."
Darlene - Operations Supervisor
Darlene was born in Yakima WA but has lived in Central OR for about 50 years! She came to work at the farm in 2015 and is becoming our main watering expert, which is one of the most difficult jobs in a green-house environment! We're so glad she joined us and she enjoys the farm too, saying we're the best employers and crew around!
Hobbies & Past-times?
"Gardening, quilting, riding 4 wheelers."
Favorite Garden Style?
"Holly's yard!" ;o)
Favorite Plants?
"Roses, lemon cukes."
Amelia - Sales/Operations
Amelia is a true Whistle Stop native, having been born and raised at the farm! And even though she's attending nursing school, living and working in LaGrande, she's still an intricate part of our day to day farm operations!
Hobbies & Past-times?
"I like school, swimming, volleyball, and I also enjoy being with friends."
Favorite Garden style?
"Colorful, smelly and lots of delicious edible things!"
Favorite Plants?
"Cucumbers, raspberries, strawberries, tomatoes, zucchini, blueberries, smelly shrubs, lilies, hibiscus, colorful annuals... everything."
Dia - Support
Dia moved to Bend in 2012 and has a beautiful garden on the north side of Aubrey Butte. She has been with us since 2014 and is part of our seed planting crew. The meticulous, careful work needs a steady hand, and Dia is great at it! She likes the crew at the farm, and our customers - and she loves to take home a little something for her garden almost every time she works! ;o) Hobbies & Past-times? "I am a gardener and a quilter." Favorite Garden Style? "I'm interested in ALL gardens."
Sherry - Sales
Sherry was born in Portland, but grew up in Easter Oregon. Sherry's family skied and camped in Central Oregon, so she moved here in 1978. She loves skiing, and was a ski instructor for 7 years at Mt. Bachelor. Sherry's interest in gardening and landscaping started when she was 14 years old.
Hobbies & Past-times?
"My passion is still skiing and enjoying the outdoors. I love to paint and create art.
Favorite Garden Style?
"My favorite style is a balanced English garden, rare in Central Oregon."
Favorite Plants?
"The plants I like best are purple and deer resistant: Iris, Russian sage, catmint. I do a container garden and a lot of experimenting."
Jacob- Support
Jake has lived at the farm his entire life! Being Holly's son and growing up around farming has given him an interest in it, and he is a welcome addition to our support and farm crews! He likes the farming and field work and we all (his parents especially) appreciate his enthusiasm for all that hard work! He is currently attending high school in Redmond.
Hobbies & Past-times?
"Working with horses."
Favorite Plants?
"Raspberry."
Gabrielle - Sales
Gabrielle is one of the few folks who was actually born and raised here in Central Oregon and she loves it enough that she just never left.
Hobbies & Past-times?
"I enjoy entertaining, gardening, cooking and baking, avid wine consumer, art and crafts, sitting by (or in) our piece of the river with family & friends. But mostly my favorite past time is hanging out with my husband and 3 daughters!"
Favorite Garden Style?
"There is something whimsical about the European cottage gardens that I absolutely love."
Favorite Plants?
"I love my lilies, every time I see a lily I don't have, I buy it! I also can't forget my daisy's, they are a happy flower! My go to annuals are petunias, allysum, and phlox. I incorporate them into all my pots and planters. One of my favorite shrubs is the Rock Daphne, and I really enjoy the versatility of lavender and all you can use the flowers for."
Andrea - Sales
Andrea re-joins us this season after taking a couple years off to concentrate on her "real" job in the corporate world, but this summer she took a break because she needed to be with her people, and boy are we thrilled!
Hobbies & Past-times?
"Hiking, gardening, reading an taking care of pets!"
Favorite Garden Style?
"Lots of colors that attract birds, bees butterflies, etc."
Favorite Plants?
"Lavender!"
Becky- Sales
Born and raised in Seattle, WA I fell in love with Tulips from the Skagit Valley. Moved to Bend in 2007 and have enjoyed this perfect place to raise a family. My professional experience is all in accounting so I am excited to try something new and grow in my gardening knowledge.
Hobbies & Past-times?
My family loves the outdoors so I enjoy all things Central Oregon, snowboarding, cross-country skiing, paddle boarding, backpacking, walking with friends, and mountain biking. I also enjoy working with my hands building things from recycled wood and materials. Built my own small greenhouse in 2020 from old doors and windows.
Favorite Garden Style?
Bright colorful flowers and productive vegetable gardens.
Favorite Plants?
Tulips, Peonies, Petunias, Kale, and Raspberries
Lisa- Sales
Lisa is truly part of the family (because she's Holly's SIL ;o)! She was raised in Bend, and has worked in healthcare for 16 years. She has a newborn baby boy and was wanting a part-time job for the time being.
Hobbies & Past-times?
"I enjoy reading, going to concerts with friends and family, and hanging out with my newborn son."
Favorite Garden Style?
" I love raised garden beds and flower baskets."
Favorite Plants?
"Food Plants! Strawberries, zucchini, basil, cilantro, as well as lavender.
Julie- Sales
Julie was raised in Portland, and came to Bend in 1994. "I worked mostly in construction and restoration. I have been married for 24 years to my awesome husband. I love working outdoors and playing in the dirt."
Hobbies and past-times?
"I enjoy gardening and reading."
Favorite garden style?
Vegetables gardens!
Favorite Plants?
"I love all plants."
Jennifer- Sales
Jennifer is from southern Idaho. " I have lived here in Bend with my husband for 15 years. I have worked at the Pine Tavern and Sunriver Brewing Company here in Bend.
"Hobbies and past-times?
"I like hiking, cooking, camping, animals, especially horses and horseback riding, as well as just being out in nature.
"Favorite garden style?
Jennifer says her favorite garden styles are edible gardens, herbs, wildflowers, and daisies.
Favorite Plants?
"Daisies are my favorite, always smiling at you!"
Tamara- Sales
Tamara and her husband Paul moved from Eugene Aka "The Valley" to Bend in 2017.
Hobbies & Past-times?
Tamara enjoys gardening, skiing, working out, socializing, as well as traveling to exotic locations.
Favorite Garden Style?
"I like eclectic cottage, with colorful varieties of flowers, both perennials and annuals are my favorite gardening styles."
Favorite Plants?
"My favorite plants are deer resistant, maltese cross, brunnera, hanging baskets, anything with color that will grow here."
Judy- Sales
Judy joins the Whistle Stop after a successful career in nursing. She grew up in the Midwest, and then lived many years in the San Francisco area. She was drawn to Central Oregon after life changes nudged her into a new chapter in her life.
Hobbies & Past-times?
Hiking, snowshoeing, kayaking, camping and knitting.
Favorite Garden Style?
Continuous blooming!
Favorite Plants?
Perennials, sedums, coneflowers and bee balms
Dena- Sales
Dena was born and raised in Kansas. She moved to Oregon in 1990 where she met her husband. Central Oregon provided a great place to raise her family and explore.
Hobbies & Past-times?
“I like to garden, cook, camp, and bird watching. I enjoy my family and being a grandma.”
Favorite Garden Style?
“Xeriscaping is my favorite. I love the native high desert look: cactus, succulents, wildflowers, anything that is native. In my greenhouse I prefer raised beds for gardening - striving for self-sufficiency.”
Favorite Plants?
“All food plants, Lupine, Lavender, Pansy, Hen & Chickens and Cactus”
What do you like about working at The Whistle Stop?
“I love to help others find plants that will work best in their space. It brings me great joy to see others' excitement and smiles while picking out their perfect plants.”
Susan- Sales
Susan is originally from Florida and ended up in Central Oregon via Fairbanks, AK. (That sounds like a story in itself).
Hobbies & Past-times?
"Outside of gardening, hiking, biking, backpacking, paddling, skiing, reading, yoga, hanging out with my husband and puppy. " However, Susan says, "life is not meant to be full of doing, I love to just 'be' as often as possible. "
Favorite garden style?
"As long as it's full of colorful flowers, bugs and butterflies, all of them."
Favorite plants?
"I love anything bright and colorful and I love growing basil. I make a lot of pesto at home."
What do you like about working at The Whistle Stop?
The energy, the people and the plants.
Glenda- Sales
Glenda spent most of her life in Northern WA, within spitting distance of Canada. However, few years ago, some life changes pushed her to move nearer to family here in the high desert.
Hobbies and past-times?
Flower gardening, crafting, and reading.
Favorite garden style
Lush greenery, continuously blooming flowers, lots of birds and bubbling water would all be in my perfect garden.
Favorite plants?
Daphne, Quince, multi-grafted apple tree, hellebore
Aaron- Sales
Aaron is a very recent transplant from San Diego to Bend. He is excited to be closer to family, and he will eventually be looking to work as a remote data analyst, or potentially start a teaching position for the 2023-24 school year.
Hobbies and past-times?
With this transition to Bend I will stop my surfing hobby and pick up rock climbing again! I also enjoy playing chess and volleyball. I am looking forward to exploring the outdoors and going on hikes more often!
My favorite hobby is cooking, I am no expert but I like to think I have a strong knack for spices and creating recipes with a fun twist! My girlfriend and I have found it is also one of the best ways for us to bond and have fun together.
Favorite garden style?
My dream garden is one that can be used to supplement your home cooked meals: carrots, lettuce, tomatoes, etc. I am a big fan of raised planter beds and how they can help you organize your plants. I am still learning about companion planting, but I like that raised planter bed gardens often incorporate this idea!
Favorite plants?
I love to have a small personal herb garden with plants like basil, and oregano. They are easy to maintain and add freshness to your cooking.